Quality of Canada Western Amber Durum in 2025

This report presents harvest quality data for Canada Western Amber Durum (CWAD) grown in 2025. Wheat samples were submitted to the Canadian Grain Commission’s Harvest Sample Program by producers. Quality data are compiled from the results of analytical tests performed in the Grain Research Laboratory.

Canada Western Amber Durum wheat

CWAD is the second most widely grown class of wheat in Western Canada. It is used in a wide variety of products, including long and short dried pasta, fresh pasta, sheeted pasta, couscous and baked bread. CWAD wheat has superior milling quality, producing high semolina yield with low ash content and speck count. It also has the high yellow pigment content necessary to produce end-products with a bright-yellow colour. The high protein content and strong gluten properties of CWAD wheat ensure superior cooking quality of pasta and good performance in durum bread.

Summary of CWAD quality in 2025

The quality of CWAD wheat in 2025 was good, with 44% and 83% of the crop in the top 2 and 3 grades, respectively. Severe midge damage, darkened kernels and mildew were the main downgrading factors. The 2025 CWAD crop had larger and more uniform kernels, higher test weight, higher total milling yield and higher semolina yield than in 2024. The mean protein content of wheat was very high (14.7%), slightly above ten-year average of 14.4%. The crop was generally safe and sound, with 90% of CWAD samples having DON levels less than 1.0 ppm and 71% of samples having FN values greater than 300 seconds. CDC Defy and Transcend were the top 2 CWAD varieties grown in 2025, followed by AAC Stronghold, CDC Precision, and AAC Grainland.

Grade distribution

No. 1 CWAD,
No. 2 CWAD,
No. 3 CWAD 82.8%

More information

Protein

Protein content:
14.7%

More information

Deoxynivalenol (DON)

DON < 1.0 ppm:
90%

More information

Falling Number (FN)

FN > 300 seconds:
71.6%

More information

Variety

Top varieties:

CDC Defy
Transcend
AAC Stronghold
CDC Precision
AAC Grainland

Data follows — **Figure 1** Top CWAD varieties grown in western Canada from 2021 to 2025.

% of total
Variety	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
Transcend	35	32	29	22	18
CDC Defy	0	2	8	17	18
AAC Stronghold	7	8	9	11	14
AAC Grainland	1	4	6	7	7
CDC Precision	16	16	14	9	7
Brigade	8	8	6	4	4

% of samples
Parameter	No. 1	No. 2	No. 3	≤ No. 4
Grade Distribution	22	22	39	17
Severe midge damage (SEVMDGE)	0	10	13	0
Mildew (MIL)	0	7	7	0
Severly sprouted (SEVSPTD)	0	4	9	0
Hard vitreous kernels (HVK)	0	3	3	0
Fusarium damage (FUS DMG)	0	0	10	0

Protein
Year	%
2016	12.7
2017	13.6
2018	14.3
2019	14.0
2020	13.8
2021	15.7
2022	14.6
2023	14.9
2024	15.2
2025	14.7

Milling and functional quality

The 2025 CWAD crop showed excellent milling performance and superior pasta processing quality. The hard vitreous kernel (HVK) content was excellent for all grades (over or close to 90%). All aggregates had high test weight and very high weight per thousand kernels (above 43 g). Total milling yield and semolina yield in the 2025 aggregates were higher than in 2024 for each grade. This was largely due to improvement in kernel size and uniformity. The No. 1 CWAD and No. 2 CWAD aggregates had FN values greater than 350 seconds and the No. 3 CWAD aggregate had a FN value of 281 seconds, indicating that the crop was generally sound.

The ash content in wheat was slightly lower for No. 1 CWAD and significantly lower for No. 2 CWAD and No. 3 CWAD, compared to the 2024 crop. All grades produced semolina that was lower in ash than the 2024 crop, but with a higher speck count due to the presence of severe midge damaged and darkened kernels in very small percentages. The total yellow pigment content was very high at 10.0 ppm for all grade aggregates. Rheological test results, including gluten index and Alveograms, demonstrated strong and balanced gluten properties. In 2025, all grades of CWAD produced pasta with excellent bright yellow color, high firmness and superior cooking quality.

Prairie aggregates CWAD ^{Footnote 1}

Prairie aggregates are from all durum producing regions in Saskatchewan and Alberta (regions 12 to 15 on the crop region map).

Alternate version
Harvest quality data for CWAD, prairie aggregates in 2025 (PDF, 522 KB)

Wheat
Quality parameter^{Footnote 1}	2025			2024
Quality parameter^{Footnote 1}	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
Test weight, kg/hL	83	81	80	81	79	77
Weight per 1000 kernels, g	46.6	44.6	43.6	38.2	33.3	30.9
Vitreous kernels, %	92	88	86	92	82	82
Protein content, %	14.1	14.1	14.8	14.1	15.3	16.8
Ash content, %	1.57	1.58	1.66	1.61	1.70	1.75
Falling Number, seconds	432	353	281	473	434	427
Durum particle size index³, %^{Footnote 2}	33	33	33	31	33	33
Cadmium content, mg/kg	0.088	0.077	0.079	0.055	0.054	0.060

Milling - Allis-Chalmers Mill
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
Total milling yield, %	75.1	74.9	74.3	72.1	71.3	69.2
Semolina yield, %	65.9	66.0	65.7	64.4	63.2	61.1

Semolina ^{Footnote 3}
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
Protein content, %	13.1	13.1	13.6	13.4	14.2	15.8
Protein loss, %	1.0	1.0	1.2	0.7	1.1	1.0
Wet gluten content, %	32.7	33.2	34.8	33.9	35.0	37.9
Gluten index, %	76	73	72	84	88	88
Ash content, %	0.71	0.70	0.74	0.77	0.81	0.85
Yellow pigment content, ppm	10.2	10.1	9.8	11.2	11.5	11.7
Yellowness, b*	31.9	31.6	30.4	33.6	32.8	32.7

Granulation
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
> 425 µm, %	8.5	7.7	7.2	9.7	9.3	8.9
> 250 µm, %	55.1	57.3	57.5	58.4	56.6	55.0
> 180 µm, %	22.2	21.1	21.2	18.9	19.2	19.4
> 150 µm, %	7.3	7.0	7.0	5.5	5.8	6.2
< 150 µm, %	7.0	6.8	7.0	7.6	9.1	10.6

Semolina speck count per 50cm ²
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
Total specks	42	55	68	10	15	9
Dark specks	5	10	12	0	1	1
Large specks (≥ 0.06 mm²)	23	26	34	5	7	4

Alveogram^{Footnote 4}
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
P (maximum over pressure), mm H₂O	91	86	84	93	94	105
L (length), mm	101	101	110	96	96	103
P/L	0.90	0.81	0.76	0.97	0.98	1.02
W (deformation energy), 10 ^-4 joules	248	238	232	269	276	335
le (elasticity Index), %	46.6	46.3	45.1	51.3	52.4	55.4

Spaghetti colour dried at 85°C
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
Brightness, L*	71.0	70.8	69.1	71.3	70.1	69.8
Redness, a*	6.6	6.8	8.0	6.8	7.7	8.1
Yellowness, b*	63.8	63.5	61.7	65.8	65.4	65.3

Spaghetti texture dried at 85°C
Quality parameter	2025			2024
Quality parameter	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD
Peak cutting force, g	623	617	617	601	641	757
Dry strand diameter, mm	1.73	1.73	1.73	1.71	1.71	1.72
Cooked strand diameter, mm	2.52	2.52	2.53	2.52	2.52	2.52

Protein data by grade and by province

% of samples
Protein range, %	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
< 12.0%	3.9	14.5	11.0	10.6	4.5
12.0-12.9%	5.5	15.0	11.7	11.7	11.0
13.0-13.9%	11.0	17.0	15.0	15.1	22.9
14.0-14.9%	19.9	20.9	14.1	14.1	25.1
> 15.0%	59.7	32.6	48.3	48.5	36.5

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 1 CWAD in 2025
Province	Number of samples	Mean	SD
Manitoba	1	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
Saskatchewan	126	14.1	1.3
Alberta and B.C.	51	14.3	1.4
Western Canada	178	14.2	1.3

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5} No. 2 CWAD in 2025
Province	Number of samples	Mean	SD
Manitoba	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
Saskatchewan	152	14.4	1.4
Alberta and B.C.	30	14.3	1.8
Western Canada	182	14.4	1.5

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 3 CWAD in 2025
Province	Number of samples	Mean	SD
Manitoba	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
Saskatchewan	272	14.9	1.5
Alberta and B.C.	44	14.3	1.4
Western Canada	316	14.8	1.5

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 4 CWAD in 2025
Province	Number of samples	Mean	SD
Manitoba	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
Saskatchewan	58	15.2	1.6
Alberta and B.C.	5	NS	NS
Western Canada	63	15.2	1.6

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 5 CWAD in 2025
Province	Number of samples	Mean	SD
Manitoba	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
Saskatchewan	66	16	1.4
Alberta and B.C.	11	NS	NS
Western Canada	77	15.9	1.4

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, all grades, CWAD in 2025
Province	Number of samples	Mean	SD
Manitoba	1	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
Saskatchewan	674	14.8	1.5
Alberta and B.C.	141	14.4	1.5
Western Canada	816	14.7	1.5

Protein data by grade and crop region

Four crop regions in western Canada were designated for Canada Western Amber Durum (CWAD) wheat based on similar environmental characteristics. The direction of grain movement, political boundaries and production (seeded area) were also considered when the regions were designated. Areas with low production were grouped with areas with high production to ensure that each region will provide a sufficient number of samples for analysis.

Description follows — Canada Western Amber Durum crop regions

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 1 CWAD in 2025
Region	Number of samples	Mean	Standard deviation
11	1	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
12	63	13.9	1.2
13	51	14.3	1.4
14	12	NS	NS
15	51	14.3	1.4

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 2 CWAD in 2025
Region	Number of samples	Mean	Standard deviation
11	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
12	73	14.2	1.4
13	67	14.8	1.3
14	12	NS	NS
15	30	14.3	1.8

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 3 CWAD in 2025
Region	Number of samples	Mean	Standard deviation
11	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
12	134	14.9	1.6
13	110	15.1	1.3
14	28	14.0	1.3
15	44	14.3	1.4

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 4 CWAD in 2025
Region	Number of samples	Mean	Standard deviation
11	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
12	34	15.0	1.6
13	20	15.9	1.4
14	4	NS	NS
15	5	NS	NS

Protein content (%)^{Footnote 5}, No. 5 CWAD in 2025
Region	Number of samples	Mean	Standard deviation
11	0	NS^{Footnote *}	NS
12	24	16.0	1.8
13	42	16.0	1.2
14	0	NS	NS
15	11	NS	NS

Test weight distribution data by crop year

Test weight range (kg/hL)
Test weight range	2021	2022	2023	2024	2025
< 73	0.2	0.8	3.8	3.8	0.1
73-75	2.2	1.5	4.7	4.7	0.6
75-78	19.5	8.2	25.6	25.3	10.3
78-79	13.3	7.1	7.9	7.9	9.3
79-80	23.3	14.6	17.2	17.3	17.2
80-82	32.1	29.5	24.3	24.3	32.5
82-84	8.7	32.4	14.3	14.4	25.7
≥ 84	0.6	5.9	2.3	2.3	4.2

Grading factor data

Producer samples submitted to the Harvest Sample Program were graded using the current grading factor tolerances found in the Official Grain Grading Guide. The table below lists the grading factors that led to downgrading in this year’s wheat samples and the percentage of samples that were downgraded for each grading factor. A sample can be downgraded if it does not meet the tolerances for 1 or more grading factors.

Grading factors and the percentage of samples downgraded for CWAD wheat samples from all provinces

Samples	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD	No. 5 CWAD
Number of samples	178	182	316	63	77
% of total	21.8	22.3	38.7	7.7	9.4

Grading factor	No. 1 CWAD	No. 2 CWAD	No. 3 CWAD	No. 4 CWAD	No. 5 CWAD
Atificial stain (ART STND)	0.0	0.5	0.0	0.0	0.0
Broken (BKN)	0.0	3.8	1.9	4.8	9.1
Ergot (ERG)	0.0	0.5	12.3	0.0	63.6
Frost (FR)	0.0	2.7	4.4	7.9	5.2
Fusarium damage (FUS DMG)	0.0	0.5	24.7	0.0	3.9
Grass green kernels (GRASS GR)	0.0	1.6	0.0	0.0	0.0
Hard vitreous kernels (HVK)	0.0	12.6	7.9	22.2	0.0
Heated (HTD)	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.0
Midge damage (MDGE)	0.0	6.0	0.0	0.0	1.3
Mildew (MIL)	0.0	31.9	18.7	4.8	0.0
Matter other than cereal grains (MOTCG)	0.0	2.2	2.5	0.0	2.6
Severe midge damage (SEVMDGE)	0.0	44.5	32.6	31.7	9.1
Severely sprouted kernels (SEVSPTD)	0.0	16.5	23.4	6.3	0.0
Shrunken kernels (SHR)	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	3.9
Smudge (SM)	0.0	11.0	6.0	1.6	0.0
Stones (STNS)	0.0	0.0	0.3	0.0	0.0
Total shrunken and broken (TSHRBKN)	0.0	0.5	0.0	0.0	0.0
Total sprouted (TSPTD)	0.0	3.8	10.4	15.9	7.8
Test weight (TWT)	0.6	9.9	4.4	3.2	0.0
Wheat of other classes (WOOC)	0.0	2.7	3.2	12.7	0.0

Deoxynivalenol (DON) data

Deoxynivalenol (DON) is a mycotoxin that can be found in grain infected with Fusarium head blight. DON is not an official grading factor listed in the Canada Grain Regulations or the Official Grain Grading Guide. The Canadian Grain Commission uses the visual assessment of Fusarium damaged kernels as a proxy for DON.

Although DON isn’t an official grading factor, it may be included as a contract specification in grain transactions. The Canadian Grain Commission provides DON results to producers who participate in the Harvest Sample Program.

DON content (ppm) for CWAD wheat samples
DON (ppm)	%
< 0.3	49.8
0.3 to 1.0	39.8
> 1.0	10.43

Percentage of CWAD wheat samples by DON content (ppm)
DON (ppm)	Number of samples	% of total
Below limit (< 0.3)	435	49.83
0.3 to 1.0	347	39.75
1.1 to 2.0	52	5.96
2.1 to 3.0	28	3.21
3.1 to 4.0	4	0.46
4.1 to 5.0	4	0.46
5.1 to 6.0	1	0.11
Above limit (> 6.0)	2	0.23
All samples	873	100

Falling Number (FN) data

Falling Number (FN) results are an indicator of sprout damage in wheat. FN is not an official grading factor listed in the Canada Grain Regulations or the Official Grain Grading Guide. The Canadian Grain Commission uses the visual assessment of sprouted and severely sprouted kernels as a proxy for FN.

Although FN isn’t an official grading factor, it may be included as a contract specification in grain transactions. The Canadian Grain Commission provides FN results to producers who participate in the Harvest Sample Program.

Percentage of CWAD wheat samples by FN results (seconds)
FN (seconds)	% of samples
> 351	59.3
301 to 350	12.1
251 to 300	14.1
< 250	14.4

FN results (seconds) for CWAD wheat samples in 2025
FN (seconds)	Number of samples	% of total
> 450	76	8.71
401 to 450	196	22.45
351 to 400	246	28.18
301 to 350	106	12.14
251 to 300	123	14.09
201 to 250	64	7.33
151 to 200	28	3.21
101 to 150	23	2.63
61 to 100	11	1.26
60	0	0
All samples	873	100

Footnotes

Footnote 1

Data are reported on a 13.5% moisture basis for wheat and a 14.0% moisture basis for semolina, except Alveogram results which are reported on a 15% moisture basis

Return to footnote 1 referrer

Footnote 2

Particle size index is based on wheat meal generated by a Retsch ZM 200 Ultra Centrifugal Mill. For more information refer to the methods and tests used by the Canadian Grain Commission to measure the quality of wheat.

Return to footnote 2 referrer

Footnote 3

Semolina analysis is conducted using granular products with a constant extraction rate of 70%.

Return to footnote 3 referrer

Footnote 4

Alveogram results from the Chopin Alveolab.

Return to footnote 4 referrer

Footnote 5

Protein content is determined using near-infrared spectroscopy calibrated against the Combustion Nitrogen Analysis reference method and is expressed as nitrogen x 5.7, on a 13.5% moisture basis.

Return to footnote 5 referrer

Footnote *

NS = Not sufficient. Insufficient number of samples to generate a representative value.

Return to footnote * referrer

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2026-10-13

Quality of Canada Western Amber Durum in 2025

Canada Western Amber Durum wheat

Summary of CWAD quality in 2025

Grade distribution

Protein

Deoxynivalenol (DON)

Falling Number (FN)

Variety

Milling and functional quality

Prairie aggregates CWAD ^{Footnote 1}

Protein data by grade and by province

Protein data by grade and crop region

Test weight distribution data by crop year

Grading factor data

Grading factors and the percentage of samples downgraded for CWAD wheat samples from all provinces

Deoxynivalenol (DON) data

Falling Number (FN) data

Page details

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Quality of Canada Western Amber Durum in 2025

Canada Western Amber Durum wheat

Summary of CWAD quality in 2025

Grade distribution

Protein

Deoxynivalenol (DON)

Falling Number (FN)

Variety

Milling and functional quality

Prairie aggregates CWAD Footnote 1

Protein data by grade and by province

Protein data by grade and crop region

Test weight distribution data by crop year

Grading factor data

Grading factors and the percentage of samples downgraded for CWAD wheat samples from all provinces

Deoxynivalenol (DON) data

Falling Number (FN) data

Page details

Quick Enquiry

Migova AI Assistant

Prairie aggregates CWAD ^{Footnote 1}